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My baby nurses every twenty minutes...HELP!!!

Hi everyone...I'm new here and this is my first post, so here goes...

My younger son is two and a half months old. During the day, he usually nurses every twenty minutes...no joke. It's a rare occasion if he goes an hour without nursing. I'm starting to feel like all I do all day long is sit on the couch and feed him. And then going out is a whole other issue all in itself. I fed him twice at the grocery store today and I was there less than an hour. I'm also trying to pump in between feedings, but by the time I get everything set up to start pumping, he is either ready to eat again or I'm unable to get much because he has drained me dry.

What I notice is that he usually only nurses for about five minutes at each feeding, so to me it's perfectly understandable why he constantly wants to eat. I just can't seem to keep him focused on nursing long enough so that he gets enough to keep him satisfied for very long. I also wonder if it's more of a comfort thing for him as well because I tend to nurse him to sleep.

Please don't get me wrong because I love breastfeeding and I wouldn't trade it for the world, but my boobs need a break every now and then!

Has anyone experienced this and do you have any tips or suggestions to help him stay at the breast longer so he stays full for longer periods of time? This is all just so new to me because my older son, who is almost eight, nursed every two to three hours like clockwork.

Re: My baby nurses every twenty minutes...HELP!!!

Unfortunately I cannot give you any advice, but wanted to add that I have similar situation,except that we are fine during the day every 2-3 hours, and at night my baby (4 months) wants to nurse every 1 -1,5. I don't know what to do. I need sleeeeeep
Seems like she wakes up to eat, but once she starts she falls back to sleep and doesn;t consume enough milk to last for 3-4 hours.
From 6 weeks she started sleeping for 5-6 hours. NOw it is a history. Maybe somebody can explain me whats happening and how can I get her to sleep more

Re: My baby nurses every twenty minutes...HELP!!!

Also, it could be that he is distracted easily. My ds is like this. Distractible Baby Resource I found that by nursing in a dark room laying down helped.

~Jenn~

mother of 2 boys!08/14/98~~03/20/08Birth: 7lbs 12oz, 1 year: 22lbs 11oz until he self-weaned 4 days before his third birthday ... still on occasion ... and happily ************************************************** ************************************************** *****************People need to understand that when they're deciding between breastmilk and formula, they're not deciding between Coke and Pepsi.... They're choosing between a live, pure substance and a dead substance made with the cheapest oils available. ~Chele Marmet

Re: My baby nurses every twenty minutes...HELP!!!

So sorry, that does sound frustrating!

I would try a couple things:
Block feeding would be first
I would also try and switch the environment up a little, change rooms, turn off tv etc.?
Pacifier- if you are open to it.
Breast compression when your lo is starting to stop nursing at the end of a quick session, see if more milk would interest?

Kelly

Mommy to Gabriel born 12/25/06 Breastfed 12/25/06 - 12/09 and possibly here and there still
Madelyn born 9/24/09 delivered at home and caught by my husband "To put the world right in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order, we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right."

Re: My baby nurses every twenty minutes...HELP!!!

Originally Posted by @llli*gabesmommy

So sorry, that does sound frustrating!

I would try a couple things:
Block feeding would be first
I would also try and switch the environment up a little, change rooms, turn off tv etc.?
Pacifier- if you are open to it.
Breast compression when your lo is starting to stop nursing at the end of a quick session, see if more milk would interest?

Re: My baby nurses every twenty minutes...HELP!!!

Thank you so much for all of your responses!

Heather...I have never heard of block nursing before. Thank you so much for that link! I think that definitely will help and I'm about to try it right now. I'm not opposed to using a pacifier, but he tends to get upset when I offer it to him. He knows I'm trying to be sneaky...ha ha! At night he actually does really well. He has been sleeping through the night for the past couple of weeks with the exception of two nights where he woke up every four hours. I'm definitely not complaining about that though! I think the only way that I am able to keep my sanity right now is the fact that he sleeps really well at night!

Beshka...I feel your pain! Maybe you can try the block nursing technique as well and hopefully that will work. Good luck!

Jenn...thank you so much for the links! They are great. I don't think it's a growth spurt because it has been going on for several weeks, but I definitely will try changing the environment to see if that helps along with the block nursing. I usually nurse him on the couch in the living room, in the bed in our bedroom, or in his glider in his nursery (we've ended up having him sleep with us and he doesn't even use his crib...ha ha!). I make sure that it is quiet and that the TV is off, but I think I will try laying down in my older son's room because that room seems to be the darkest room in the house. Thanks again for the helpful links!

Re: My baby nurses every twenty minutes...HELP!!!

I also wanted to add how relieved I am to have found this forum. None of my other friends are breastfeeding, so it has been frustrating trying to get advice from them. All I get are suggestions to let him cry it out, supplement him with formula, and things like that. Thanks again for all of your help ladies!

Re: My baby nurses every twenty minutes...HELP!!!

no problem momma! This forum saved my breastfeeding relationship,and i am so thankful for the awesome ladies here. I too had the same type of 'helpful' advice from friends and family that you had...i just take it with a grain of salt now.
Hope you find something that helps!

I'm Heather, SAHM to Cooper, born 1/2007
and Bennett, our precious NICU grad born 8/2009
and wife to Bill since 10/2003!
We're young, but we know we can do it!Life with the Stevens-blog

Re: My baby nurses every twenty minutes...HELP!!!

Not sure if this would work for you but could you nurse using a ring sling? I've never been able to manage it but I think it's b/c I'm fairly large chested, but I know lots of mothers are able to manage this. That way your lo can nurse every twice in the grocery store without anyone being the wiser for it.

The Seven Standards of ecological breastfeeding: (1) exclusive breasfeeding for the first 6 months (2) pacify baby at your breast (3) don't use bottles and pacifiers (4) co-sleep for night feedings (5) take a nursing nap (6) nurse frequently day and night; avoiding schedules (7) avoid practices that restrict nursing or separates you from your baby. The average return of menstruation for ecological breastfeeding mothers is between 14 and 15 months.